The UN’s nuclear watchdog said it hasn’t seen any indication that North Korea’s nuclear activities have ceased despite pledges to denuclearise and it’s causing “grave concern”.

A new report published late on Monday by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) listed ongoing efforts at various nuclear facilities, including the Yongbyon power plant that is believed to produce plutonium for North Korea’s nuclear weapon tests.

Construction of a possible additional reprocessing plant that could extract plutonium from used reactor fuel has continued, according to the report.

The IAEA said it has been monitoring a site near the capital, Pyongyang, whose characteristics and construction history “are not inconsistent with a centrifuge enrichment facility”. Enriched uranium can be used in nuclear warheads.

“The continuation and further development of the DPRK’s nuclear programme and related statements by the DPRK are a cause for grave concern,” IAEA chief Yukiya Amano said in the report, referring to North Korea’s official name – the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

Pyongyang didn’t immediately respond to the report.

Trump-Kim deal

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un agreed to work towards a nuclear-weapons-free Korean Peninsula when he met South Korean President Moon Jae-in in April and US President Donald Trump in June.

Trump said in an interview with Reuters news agency on Monday he believed North Korea had taken specific steps towards denuclearisation and he would “most likely” meet again with Kim.

However, Pyongyang has given no indication it is willing to give up its nuclear weapons unilaterally as the Trump administration has demanded.

IAEA inspectors are not allowed into North Korea, but they have been monitoring the country via satellites and other available information.

Dismantling Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons programme and verifying it would be an enormous and complex task. The IAEA has said it is best placed to verify a deal. 

Monday’s report is to be submitted to an IAEA board meeting in September.

England women’s manager Phil Neville has recalled captain Steph Houghton and Alex Greenwood for the final 2019 World Cup qualifiers against Wales and Kazakhstan.

Centre-back Houghton is fit after a knee injury, while left-back Greenwood returns from suspension.

Uncapped Everton defender Gabby George is also in the 23-player squad.

The winners of Wales-England at Newport on 31 August – to be shown live on the BBC – will qualify for the World Cup.

Wales are a point ahead of England in Group 1, having played one game more.

Defeat for England will end their chances of automatic qualification, but a draw would mean they will top the group with victory in Kazakhstan on 4 September.

Neville said: “Wales will be determined to make the most of home advantage and their crowd will be expecting a victory.

“We will have to be at our very best to get the result we need and no-one in our squad is looking beyond this match.”

England squad

Goalkeepers: Karen Bardsley (Manchester City), Mary Earps (Wolfsburg), Carly Telford (Chelsea).

Defenders: Millie Bright (Chelsea), Lucy Bronze (Lyon), Rachel Daly (Houston Dash), Gabby George (Everton), Alex Greenwood (Manchester United ), Steph Houghton (Manchester City), Abbie McManus (Manchester City), Leah Williamson (Arsenal).

Midfielders: Isobel Christiansen (Lyon), Fran Kirby (Chelsea), Jordan Nobbs (Arsenal), Jill Scott (Manchester City), Keira Walsh (Manchester City), Fara Williams (Reading).

Forwards: Toni Duggan (Barcelona), Melissa Lawley (Manchester City), Beth Mead (Arsenal), Nikita Parris (Manchester City), Jodie Taylor (Seattle Reign), Ellen White (Birmingham City).

WASHINGTON – Aging coal-fired power plants could get a new lease on life under an industry-friendly proposal by the Trump administration that would replace the Clean Power Plan, Barack Obama’s signature plan to confront climate change.

Unveiled Tuesday, the Affordable Clean Energy (ACE) Rule would give states broad latitude to in how they would regulate power plant’s greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to global warming.

In the proposal’s fine print is a note that the plan could cause an extra 1,400 premature deaths a year.

“The ACE Rule would restore the rule of law and empower states to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and provide modern, reliable, and affordable energy for all Americans,” EPA Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler said in a statement. “Today’s proposal provides the states and regulated community the certainty they need to continue environmental progress while fulfilling President Trump’s goal of energy dominance.”

The Clean Power Plan rule was finalized in 2015, mainly targeting coal-fired power plants that account for nearly 40 percent of U.S. carbon dioxide emissions. But it remains on hold under a Supreme Court stay pending the outcome of the legal challenge from the states.

In October, then-EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt rolled it back.

Aimed squarely at coal-fired power plants, the Obama-era regulation requires existing power plants to cut harmful emissions compared to 2005 levels. By 2030, the reduction would be 32 percent for carbon, 90 percent for sulfur dioxide and 72 percent for nitrogen oxides.

Wheeler called the Obama plan ” overly prescriptive and burdensome” that would have hiked utility rates by as much as 40 percent. EPA officials said consumer prices will fall slightly under the Trump plan by 2025.

According to the EPA, the Trump plan would:

• define the “best system of emission reduction” for existing power plants as on-site, heat-rate efficiency improvements.
• provide states with a list of “candidate technologies” that can be used to establish standards of performance and be incorporated into their state plans.
• update the New Source Review permitting program to further encourage “efficiency improvements” at existing power plants.
• Give states “states adequate time and flexibility” to develop their own plans.

Environmental groups, vowing to sue to stop the proposal, decried the plan as a sop to the coal industry at the expense of public health and the inescapable reality of climate change. 

Gina McCarthy, former EPA administrator under Obama and an architect of the Clean Power Plan, called the Trump administration’s move “a huge gimme to coal-fired power plants” by giving them a “free pass” to increase not just carbon emissions but other unhealthy pollutants as well.

“They are continuing to play to their base and they are following industry’s playbook step by step,” she told reporters. “This is all about coal at all costs.”

More: President Trump directs EPA to ease air quality rules he says suffocates industry

More: Clean Power Plan was the wrong answer

More: Climate Point: Summer is getting warmer, faster

 

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Please allow me to introduce you to Old Man Bacon.

Old Man Bacon is a dog with strikingly human-like features, who is fast winning over the internet with his extremely expressive face. Bacon’s Instagram account is flooded with pictures of him looking concerned, anxious, shocked, and despondent — all the big (and now very normal) 2018 emotions. 

 

Bacon’s looks of dread and despair are endearing and relatable — they also kind of make me want to buy him an especially strong Long Island Iced Tea. 

Though, it’s probably best not to give dogs alcohol or project my human emotions onto them in a somewhat problematic way.

But don’t worry, despite Bacon’s proclivity for frowning he’s actually quite the happy pup! 

The Pekingese, Dachshund, and Chihuahua mix was adopted over a year ago and now lives in Florida with his family, according to Get Leashed Magazine. 

Happy for you, Bacon!

DES MOINES, Iowa – A body believed to be that of Mollie Tibbetts, the 20-year-old University of Iowa student who went missing July 18, was found Tuesday, authorities said.

Greg Willey, the vice president of Crime Stoppers of Central Iowa, said the discovery provided a “tough” ending to the search. Willey provided no details on the discovery, and Tibbetts’ father, Rob Tibbetts, declined to confirm the information.

Tibbetts disappeared while jogging in her hometown of Brooklyn, Iowa. FBI, state and local law enforcement agencies have been working around the clock to find the sophomore psychology major.

Tibbetts was watching dogs at the home of her boyfriend’s brother in Brooklyn, a town of about 1,400, when authorities say they believe she went for a jog and was last seen around 7:30 p.m. local time. 

More: She’s nurturing. She’s a Harry Potter fan. This is Mollie Tibbetts

Later that evening Tibbetts’ boyfriend, Dalton Jack, said he opened a Snapchat message from Tibbetts with a photo that made it appear she was indoors.

A reward fund for information leading to her safe return had grown to more than $400,000, Crime Stoppers of Central Iowa said. Wiley said the money will be used for information that helps authorities track down anyone who might have been responsible for her death.

Bacon reported from McLean, Va. Contributing: The Associated Press

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India captain Virat Kohli takes an “outstanding” catch after Ollie Pope plays an “awful” drive to reduce England to 62-4 on day four of the third Test at Trent Bridge.

FOLLOW LIVE: England v India – in-play clips, radio & text

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WASHINGTON – While conducting a rhetorical war with members of Barack Obama’s administration, President Donald Trump said Tuesday he is not reviewing the national security clearance of the former president himself.

“Never discusses or thought of,” Trump said in a tweet.

Trump made the claim while decrying a New Yorker article that he said “falsely reported that I was going to take the extraordinary step of denying Intelligence Briefings to President Obama.”

The article focused on the conflict between Trump and former CIA Director John Brennan, who has accused Trump of acting improperly on issues ranging from Russia to his criticism of Obama. Brennan has also accused Trump of colluding with Russians who sought to influence the 2016 election by hacking Democrats.

The White House announced last week it had revoked the national security clearance for Brennan, a professional courtesy extended to former intelligence and law enforcement officials so that successors can consult with them.

Trump also said he is reviewing security clearances for other Obama-era officials, people he has clashed with frequently and has accused of seeking to undermine his presidency.

More: After John Brennan, Donald Trump is prepared to revoke more security clearances

More: President Trump to ex-CIA director John Brennan: Go ahead and sue me over security clearance

The president has publicly attacked Obama directly, accusing him at one point – without evidence – of having Trump Tower bugged during the 2016 presidential campaign.

“As Trump stepped up his public and private attacks on Obama, some of the new President’s advisers thought that he should take the extraordinary step of denying Obama himself access to intelligence briefings that were made available to all of his living predecessors,” The New Yorker reported.

The report said Trump decided against the idea after being told about “the importance of keeping former Presidents, who frequently met with foreign leaders, informed.”

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